Country will cheer for you, PM tells Indian contingent
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the country’s athletes reflected the “New India” as he interacted with Tokyo Olympics-bound athletes for an hour on Tuesday, inquiring about their journeys and delivering a message of encouragement to the contingent, which will leave in batches for the Japan from July 17.
India will have its biggest Olympics contingent ever in Tokyo with 126 participating athletes. “Don’t take the pressure of winning; just tell your heart and mind that you want to give your best. Play freely. The whole of India will cheer for you,” the PM said. He spoke to 15 athletes and their families during the televised virtual meeting.
Among those present were Deepika Kumari, the current No 1 woman archer in the world, javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, tennis star Sania Mirza, reigning badminton world champion PV Sindhu, London Olympics bronze medallist MC Mary Kom, Vinesh Phogat, who is the No 1 ranked wrestler in her weight class in the world, shooters Saurabh Chaudhary and Elavenil Valarivan, sprinter Dutee Chand, swimmer Sajan Prakash, table tennis players Manika Batra and Sharath Kamal, and boxer Ashish Kumar.
“You have come so far with your discipline, commitment and dedication. The commitment and competitiveness you have shown are the qualities of a new India and all of you are a reflection of a new India. Very soon, winning will become a habit,” said Modi.
Beginning his conversation with Deepika, who recently became world No 1 after winning gold at the Archery World Cup stage 3 in Paris, the Modi asked about the journey of the Ranchi girl, who will be playing in her second Olympics. “I heard that you started archery by taking aim at mangoes,” Modi quipped.
“After you won the gold medal in Paris, the whole nation is talking about you, you are now World no 1. Can you recall your journey?”
Deepika responded: “I like mangoes, and that’s how it started.”
“I started with a bamboo bow and then switched to a modern bow. The starting years were a struggle because there were no facilities, but then I got good training and good coaches,” said the 27-year-old.
The Tokyo Olympics, in which on-site spectators will not be allowed owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, is scheduled to be held from July 23 to August 8.
Modi then spoke to recurve archer Pravin Jadhav, who belongs to a family of daily wage labourers from Amravati, and called him an inspiration. Jadhav was part of the team that won the men’s recurve team silver at the world championships in 2019.
To javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, Modi said: “I have been told that you got injured, but still you created a new record. You don’t need to get bogged down by expectations, don’t take the burden of expectations, just focus on your goal.”
Replying to the PM, Neeraj said: “I am focusing on my game, anything I want, the government is helping me in that. We have a limited career, because of injury, I lost some time but I was fully focused on the Olympics.” The event was initially scheduled for 2020 but was pushed because of the raging Covid-19 pandemic.
While speaking to boxer Ashish Kumar, who lost his father just days before the Olympic qualifiers in March 2020, Modi said it required great mental strength to overcome personal loss and represent the country and reminded him of Sachin Tendulkar. “I recall that Sachin Tendulkar’s father passed away when he was playing in an important tournament for India. He chose to play and through his game he paid tribute to his father. You have done the same thing. You are a winner,” he said. Dutee Chand shared her struggles in her professional and personal life. “I come from a weavers’ family. I have three sisters and one brother and people used to criticise my mother for giving birth to so many girls. We had little food to eat. I was thinking, if I play well I can get a good job in the government.”
Modi called Mary Kom an inspiration for the entire contingent. To Sania Mirza, he said: “You are a champion and a fighter. I am sure you will play very well at the Olympics.”
Sports minister Anurag Thakur, former sports minister Kiren Rijiju, and the president of the Indian Olympic Association, Narinder Batra, also attended the event.